Joel Hayden | |
|---|---|
| 26th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts | |
| In office 1863–1866 | |
| Governor | John Albion Andrew |
| Preceded by | John Nesmith |
| Succeeded by | William Claflin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 8, 1798 |
| Died | November 10, 1873 (aged 75) |
| Political party | Republican |
Joel Hayden (April 8, 1798 – November 10, 1873), was an American industrialist and politician who served as the 26th lieutenant governor of Massachusetts from 1863 to 1866.
In 1857, Amherst College accepted a gift from Joel Hayden – a bronze neo-classical sculpture named after Sabrina, Goddess of the Britons.
Hayden owned several business and mills in Haydenville, Massachusetts, a borough of Williamsburg, Massachusetts, including a brass factory, gas works, cotton factory, and foundry. He was also a part-owner of the Williamsburg Reservoir Company, which built the shoddy Williamsburg Reservoir, completed in 1866. On May 16, 1874, several months after Hayden's death, the dam failed catastrophically, causing a flood that killed 139 people and destroyed all four of Hayden's factories.[1]